Asian-American theatre can be considered from avant-garde plays by Ping Chong to higher budget productions on Broadway by David Henry Hwang. The history of Asian- American theatre dates back to over a century ago, but was more underground because social and cultural factors prevented it from becoming a mainstream genre of theatre. It was not able to thrive under such circumstances. Foreign entertainment like operas and puppet shows where brought by the Chinese to American during the gold rush in the 1850's, gaining some recognition; however, Congress passed the Asian Exclusion Act in 1882, and antisemitism drove many Chinese out of the area. They began their own opera clubs in Boston, San Fransisco, etc. However, most Asian Americans weren't appearing in mainstream Western style entertainment. Caucasians were playing the oriental roles in big productions. Japanese immigrants hardly showed up at all in the theatre because of the relocation camps during WWII. Finding little to no roles in big productions, the East West Players in Los Angeles was formed to scout talent and declare ethnic pride. Workshops began popping up all over the country, boosting the career of many new Asian-American actors. Today, many writers have crossed over into mainstream media like David Henry Hwang, and others have broken out of the Asian-American play box altogether. They are discovering who they are before joining their fellow Caucasians onstage as equals.